Control for radial type pumps or the like

ABSTRACT

A pump comprising cylinders arranged around a hollow housing carrying a drive shaft having a radially adjustable member on it which is displaced by a wedge to vary the eccentricity of a sleeve which engages the pistons in said cylinders to vary the pumping capacity, the wedge being positioned in the shaft and having means to move it axially in the shaft to give the said volumetric variation.

nited States Patent [191 Lines [111 3,827,831 [4 Aug. 6, 1974 1 CONTROL FOR RADIAL TYPE PUMPS OR THE LIKE [76] Inventor: Raydon Ayers Lines, 2 Rasp Ave.,

Medindie, Australia 5081 [22] Filed: May 15, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 252,998

[52] US. Cl. 417/273 [51] Int. Cl. F04b 1/04, F04b 49/00 [58] Field of Search 92/121; 74/571, 600; 417/221, 273; 123/406 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,149,728 8/1915 Ciarlo 74/571 L 1,191,230 7/1916 Rielt 74/571 Schroepfer 417/221 2,851,952 9/1958 Lane 417/273 2,856,793 10/1958 Budlong 92/12.] 2,932,255 4/1960 Neukirch.... 417/429 3,073,418 l/l963 Beatley 417/221 3,492,948 2/1970 Platt 92/12 1 3,703,839 11/1972 Velinde 123/48 B Primary Examiner-William L. Freeh [57] ABSTRACT A pump comprising cylinders arranged around a hol' low housing carrying a drive shaft having a radially adjustable member on it which is displaced by a wedge to vary the eccentricity of a sleeve which engages the pistons in said cylinders to vary the pumping capacity, the wedge being positioned in the shaft and having means to move it axially in the shaft to give the said volumetric variation.

6 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PAIENTEDMIE' 6 1 -3'.a27.e31

sum 1 or 2 CONTROL FOR RADIAL TYPE PUMPS OR THE LIKE BACKGROUND OF INVENTION This invention relates to an improved control for radial type pumps or the like and in particular it relates to a pump of the type in which perhaps a number of radial cylinders are used in which pistons operate to pump fluids such for instance as the feed water to boilers or the fuel to burners or the like where variation of the capacity is desirable for speed or other control and for pumping hydraulic fluids, where the fluid itself is not a good lubricator.

Thus for instance in a steam engine used for driving a vehicle it would be desirable to be able to control the steam generation by the amount of fuel and water supplied to a flash tube boiler or similar device and in such a unit it is therefore conceivable that if a simple and effective control could be provided which -will readily vary the capacity, a great advance in the art will result.

We are aware that it has been proposed to use eccentrics of variable throw to control motion but usually these have to be stopped to vary the throw or the mechanism which operates them is of a very intricate nature requiring leverages and the like by means of which the change can be effected.

The object of this invention therefore is to provide a simple and effective pump which will be operated in a simple manner and in which the capacity can be variable if required from zero to maximum through a simple control,

SUMMARY OF INVENTION The objects of the invention are achieved by providing a variable delivery piston pump including atleast one cylinder and a piston operable therein, a shaft for driving the pump, a floating annular sleeve mounted to be moved radially relatively to the axis of the drive means by an adjustable member on said shaft and adapted to actuate the piston or pistons of the pump, and means to adjust the adjustable member and thus the floating annular sleeve radially of the axis of the drive means so that the stroke of the piston or pistons is varied to thereby vary the delivery of the pump.

Thus for instance the drive shaft could be divided to form a first and a second part which are coaxially located in bearings in a housing which carries the cylinders of the pumping device, and on these shafts are a pair of discs which are spaced apart and rotationally interconnected by an adjustable member surrounded by an annular sleeve, on the medial line of the cylinders, followers on the pistons operating on the said sleeve, but so that the said adjustable member may be positioned coaxially with the shafts for no eccentricity but as an adjusting wedge for the said adjusting member is advanced from one of these shafts, the adjustable member engaged by the wedge is displaced outwards from the axial line of the shaft to provide a pumping action, the capacity varying in proportion to the displacement of the adjustable member by the wedge.

In order however that the nature of the invention can be more fully appreciated it will now be described in some detail but it is to be clear that the invention need not be limited to these.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A housing 1 supports on it a number of radiating cylinders 2 which have within them pistons 3 which engage a floating annular sleeve 4 mounted on an adjustable member 11, both the sleeve 4 and the member 11 being disposed between a pair of disc-like cheeks 5 and 6 each carried on separate parts 7 and 8 of a drive shaft. Bearings 9 in the housing support the drive shaft 7-8 to allow the floating annular sleeve 4 to be positioned between them, the annular sleeve having flats 4a forming bearing surfaces for the pistons or piston followers, the number of flats corresponding to the number of radial cylinders of the pump, in this case four,

Each of the cheeks 5 and 6 has guiding or slot means 10 and 10a by means of which an associatd adjustable member 11 is engaged to have radial movement in the cheeks 5 and 6 so that it can move from an axial position of the shaft 7-8 to a position where it is displaced from the axis any required amount.

In the second part 8 of the shaft both of which parts preferably have hollows l2 and 12a within them, is a wedge 13 which is guided in relation to the radial guiding means 10 which controls the adjustabe member 11, the wedge shaped member 13 preferably projecting through both of the cheeks 5 and 6 so that it is guided axially within the hollows 12 of the shaft 7-8 but can be advanced or retracted axially within a slot 14 in the adjustable member 11 which engages the disc-like cheeks 5 and 6, the slot 14 being of sufficient size that it can fully accommodate the wedge 13 when at its maximum control position but the sloping surface 15 of the wedge will at all times retain contact with the sloping edge 16 of the slot 14 in the adjustable member so that as the wedge 13 is retracted to allow the adjustable member 11 to move into a position to, or approaching, the axial alignment of the floating circular sleeve with the shafts, the pistons will actually move the sleeve to hold the sleeve or its associated member in contact with the sloping part of the wedge.

The coupling between the disc-like checks 5 and 6 is achieved by the adjustable member 11 which is engaged by the wedge 13 but which can slide in radial slots 10 and 10a in both of the cheeks so that this member ll maintains exact rotational relationship between the two checks 5 and 6, that is if one part of the shaft is driven the other is maintained in exact driven relationship to it, and it is this member 11 which engages the wedge 13 which is so shaped that it is nonrotational to the member 11 and therefore any longitudinal movement of the wedge will cause the member 11 to slide in the slots 10 and 10a and carry with it the floating annular sleeve 4 which can be supported on the member 11 by roller races 17 or any other anti-friction means if this is desirable.

The drive part 7 of the shaft has on its disc-like portions 5 a diametrical slot 10, this slot having a central key 18 dividing radially one end of the slot 10, while the adjustable member 11 has its end flange 19 formed such that it will engage in the slot 10, and a cylindrical portion 20 on which the bearing 17 for the annular sleeve 4 is fitted.

The adjustable member 11 has the slot 14 extending therethrough, the inner end or base 21 of the slot tapering to the taper of the wedge 13.

Similarly to the disc 5, the disc 6 of the second part 8 of the shaft has the slot 10a and a radial key 18a therein. The end of the cylindrical portion 20 of the adjustable member 11 has two flats 22 formed thereon, such that the flats key in the slot 10 of the disc 6.

Hence it will be seen that the member 11 keys into the disc with the key 18 entering the slot 14 and also the flats 22 on the cylindrical portion 20 key into the slot a on the disc 6 with the key 18a entering into the slot 14.

The slot 14 is such that it engages the keys l8 and 18a and also allows the wedge to pass therethrough, the wedge 13 entering into the hollow 12 and being housed in the hollow 12a of the second part 8 of the shaft 7-8.

The mechanism for operating the wedge 13 can take any usual or approved form but can conveniently comprise a member movable coaxially with the shaft which carries the wedge 13 which member may be actuated by hydraulic means through a suitable piston arrangement so that when the hydraulic pressures are adjusted, the sleeve will be correspondingly moved.

The motion could if desired be mechanically applied through a thrust bearing 25 by a shaft 23 which is mounted coaxially with the rotating shaft to project from one end thereof, the trust bearing allowing rotation of the wedge with the member 11 and movement of the shaft 23 can be boosted by a hydraulic servo mechanism, 24 (shown diagrammatically) or the like if such were desirable, or this device could be so arranged that for instance the position of the wedge could control hydraulic flow i.e., fuel feed to a boiler through this control means by so reducing the flow and the wedge is retracted, assuming that the pump is pumping water or the like to a boiler, and such an association would then allow an exact proportioning of fuel feed to water feed to take place through simple movement of the control mechanism.

The cylinders can of course be provided with the usual one way valve means 26 or the like and with one way valve means 27 in the pistons 3 to allow water or the like to be drawn into same on one stroke through the pump itself and discharged on the other and if desired spring loading can be used to ensure that the pistons will correctly follow the floating sleeve.

I claim:

1. A variable delivery piston pump including at least one cylinder and a piston operable therein, a divided drive-shaft, each part of the drive-shaft having a disclike cheek-plate, a diametrical slot in each cheek-plate, the slots being parallel to each other, a hollow adjustable member drivingly connecting each disc-like cheek-plate, a floating annular sleeve on the adjustable member and adapted to actuate the piston of the pump, a wedge member slideably adjustable axially of the drive-shaft and passing through and engaging the interior of the hollow adjustable member whereby the axial adjustment of the wedge member moves the floating annular sleeve radially to thereby vary the stroke of the piston.

2. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1 wherein the floating annular sleeve includes on its outer circumferential face a series of flats corresponding to the number of cylinders of the pump, the inner circumferential face being circular to be mounted on a ball or roller bearing mounted on said adjustable member.

3. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1 wherein the pump is a radial pump havig a series of radially arranged cylinders each having a oneway valve therein and pistons in said cylinders each having a one-way suction valve therein, whereby delivery occurs through the one-way valves in the said cylinders.

4. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1, wherein the wedge is located and guided in the slots in each disc-like part.

5. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1, wherein the interior of the hollow adjustable member is tapered correspondingly to the wedge member, and the other end of the wedge member having means to control the axial position of the wedge member whilst the wedge member rotates with the driveshaft and the hollow adjustable member.

6. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 5, wherein one of the parts for the drive-shaft is hollow and the wedge-member is mounted therein, the other part of the drive-shaft having a recess into which the end of the wedge member is engaged. 

1. A variable delivery piston pump including at least one cylinder and a piston operable therein, a divided drive-shaft, each part of the drive-shaft having a disc-like cheek-plate, a diametrical slot in each cheek-plate, the slots being parallel to each other, a hollow adjustable member drivingly connecting each disc-like cheek-plate, a floating annular sleeve on the adjustable member and adapted to actuate the piston of the pump, a wedge member slideably adjustable axially of the drive-shaft and passing through and engaging the interior of the hollow adjustable member whereby the axial adjustment of the wedge member moves the floating annular sleeve radially to thereby vary the stroke of the piston.
 2. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1 wherein the floating annular sleeve includes on its outer circumferential face a series of flats corresponding to the number of cylinders of the pump, the inner circumferential face being circular to be mounted on a ball or roller bearing mounted on said adjustable member.
 3. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1 wherein the pump is a radial pump havig a series of radially arranged cylinders each having a one-way valve therein and pistons in said cylinders each having a one-way suction valve therein, whereby delivery occurs through the one-way valves in the said cylinders.
 4. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1, wherein the wedge is located and guided in the slots in each disc-like part.
 5. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 1, wherein the interior of the hollow adjustable member is tapered correspondingly to the wedge member, and the other end of the wedge member having means to control the axial position of the wedge member whilst the wedge member rotates with the drive-shaft and the hollow adjustable member.
 6. A variable delivery piston pump as defined in claim 5, wheRein one of the parts for the drive-shaft is hollow and the wedge-member is mounted therein, the other part of the drive-shaft having a recess into which the end of the wedge member is engaged. 